Duathlon Race Report

Our March Duathlon brought us to inland Carlsbad for a great race featuring lots of hills, both on the run and on the bike. We arrived around 7:15AM, a nice change in start time allowing everyone to sleep a little more, and met up with past prez, current Ironman in training and course designer Brian Long to go over details. Calavera Middle school was gracious enough to let us set up in their parking lot, which worked perfectly as a registration and transition area.We got everything set up as athletes went through their final preparations. Brian L. went over the course one more time, explaining the 5k run around the lake and the 12.5mi. clockwise loop around the surrounding communities. After that, it was a quick walk down to the start, some final instructions, and the race was on!

With the run being uneven and hilly, we were surprised to see the first runners coming in under 20min. Mike Clinch came in to T1 first, with approx. 45 seconds on the next participant Phillipe Krebs. Both had extremely fast transitions and within seconds were out on the bike (Thumbs up to Mike for taping the directions of the bike course to the top tube of his bike). Both guys were followed closely by a group of runners coming in approx. 1-2 minutes after.

The women's race saw a good lead pack come in off the run, with Kathy Garcia, Diana Black and Monica Gabourel all coming in within a minute of each other. Quick transitions and the ladies were off for the bike portion.

As myself, Ann and the other volunteers stood around enjoying the coffee and bagels, we saw the first racer come in off the bike. Matthew Dixon came screaming into transition with a 30 second lead on the other contenders. After dismounting and switching back to his running shoes, he was off down the driveway to run the hilly 5k course one more time. He was followed by Mike and Phillipe, each posting solid bike splits on a hilly course. Once again, quick efficient transitions by both and it was back out to the run.

The women's race saw Kathy Garcia come in off the bike first, looking to lead the race wire to wire. Diana Black and Monica Gabourel came in after within 3 seconds of each other, making the run the determining factor for position in their race.

As expected, the run times were slightly slower on the second one, but we were near the finish line when we saw Mike Clinch turn the corner to climb that final hill and claim his 3rd win in our Duathlon series this year. Matt Dixon came in second, with Phillipe Krebs coming in third to round out the men's podium.

In the women's race, Kathy Garcia successfully held off all challengers with a wire to wire victory for the women. Diana Black outkicked Monica Gabourel to take the silver.

As a whole, it was a great showing by everyone. It was a very challenging course and we were excited to see so many people come out for the event. Here's a quick recap of some of the "other" race highlights (named have been removed for fear of public shaming :) Feel free to claim these highlights if you'd like)

- One participant, upon finishing the race, came in to tell us her bike split would have been better had she not been stopped by a police officer. After several minutes of speaking with the official and explaining she was in fact a US Citizen, he asked "wait.....are you in a race right now?" to which she replied "ummmm....yep." "Well, I guess this time penalty of speaking with me is punishment enough". The officer must be a triathlete.- Another participant, after leaving on the second run, we noticed he was bleeding from his knee. We asked his friend what had happened, the conversation is below:

"What happened to XXXXX?""He was on the run and he fell.""Ouch. Was he coming down a hill or on some uneven ground?""Nope.....flat ground, he just.........he just fell down""Did he bump into anyone?""No. He just...he honestly just fell down."

Thank you to everyone that came out for the event. Big thank you to Calavera Middle School for letting us use their facilities, and a HUGE thanks to Brian Long for coming up with course and marking it for everyone.

We have our first club race this Saturday at Fiesta Island. You may sign up on the website. Hope to see everyone out there!